Box



Jan 29 "1924. 3,481,973;

5. BACHMANN BQX Filed June 2, i922 Patented Jan. 29, 1924.

NITED STATES SIEGMUND BACHMANN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

BOX.

Application filed .Tune 2,

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, SIEGMUND BACK- MANN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a. new and useful Improvement in Boxes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to boxes of the socalled corner lock type wherein adjacent walls of the box are provided with portions adapted to be interlocked for holding the box in erected condition.

As boxes of the type above referred to have hitherto been provided they are so weak at their interlocking portions that they readily tear away, permitting the box to collapse when stressed to a degree which often occurs in the handling of the box; and furthermore in the case of boxes wherein the shoulder portions of the interlocking tongues of the corner-locks extend downwardly in engagement with the cooperating portions of the locks, which is a desirable condition as is well understood in the art, the tongues, as boxes have hitherto been constructed, readily disengage in the handling of the box and produce objectionable accidental collapsing of the box. Furthermore, especially where the grain of the paper board forming the walls having the portions with which the interlocking tongues interlock, extends crosswise of these walls, or in other words, vertically, and the grain of the board forming thewalls carrying the tongues extends lengthwise of these walls and thus the latter are relatively weak in resisting downward pressure exerted against their upper edges, the boxes as hitherto provided often break down due to lack of stiffening reenforcement of these weak walls. Also as boxes of all shapes and sizes of the corner-lock type have hitherto been constructed out out portions of the sheet from which the box blanks are formed are stripped from the sheet which operation adds expense to the manufacturing of the boxes.

One of my objects is to provide a box ofthe so-called corner-lock type employing tongues the locking portions of which extend downwardly, wherein the tongues will not disengage from the portions of the box with which they interlock, even in the rough handlin of'the box or the subjection thereto of re atively great stresses which, if ex- 1922. Serial No. 565,380.

erted against boxes of this type as hitherto constructed, would cause the box to collapse. Another object is to provide a constructlon of box of the corner-lock type wherein the shoulder portions of the tongues shall be tongues shall be reenforced against their tendency to crush when downward pressure is exerted against the upper edges of these walls.

Another object is to produce a box of the corner-lock type wherein stripping of cut- 7 out portions of the sheet may, at least as to some sizes of boxes, be avoided and economy in labor efi'ected.

Another object is to provide a simple form of box of the character stated and ac- 7 complishing the objects above enumerated.

Another object is to providea form of blank, for forming a corner-lock box, which lends itself to the producing of a desirable form of package where the blanks are pro- 8 vided in a stack.

Another object is to generally improve upon boxes of-the corner-lock type, whereby the boxes are better adapted for their purpose, may be more economically manufactured, be highly resistant to impairment and accidental collapsing and be readily erected and unfolded to fiat condition.

Referring to the accompanying drawing: Figure 1 is a broken view of one end of a 9 blank from which a box embodying my invention may be formed. Figure 2 1s a perspective view of one of the similar corners 'of the box, the box being shown in erected condition and the corner being viewed from 9 the inside of the box. Figure 3 is a similar view showing the box in partly erected condition, the shouldered tongue being shown out of interlocked position relative to the portion with which it interlocks; and 1 Figure 4, a view like Fig. 2 viewing the corner from the exterior of the box.

Referring to the particular illustrated embodiment of my invention, one end of the blank from which the box is formed is 1 shown in Fig. 1, this blank preferably being cut from a sheet of paper-board, such as suit-boxes, hat-boxes and the like are commonly constructed.

The blank shown, which is provided for 1 forming a rectangular box the upwardlyextending walls of which extend at a right angle to the bottom portion of the box, C0111- prises a substantially rectangular sheet of material provided with the parallel folding lines 5 set in from opposite sides of the blank and with parallel folding lines set in from the opposite ends of the blank, the one of the last-referred-to folding lines at one end only of the blank being shown and represented at 6, it being understood that the folding line which parallels the line 6 at the opposite end of the blank is parallel with the edge of the adjacent. end edge of the blank and spaced therefrom as shown on the line 6. The blank is foldable along the box,

the folding lines referred to, to form the side walls 7 and the similar end-walls of one of which is represented at 8, these walls extending about the edges of the centrally-disposed rectangular bottom-forming portion 9 of the blank. The folding lines referred to intersect each other adjacent the four corners of the blank, thereby defining at each corner of the blank a cornerextension, those at one end of the blank, and illustrative also of those at the opposite end of the blank, being shown at 10. Each corner-extension is cut from the outer edge thereof which extends at an angle to the folding lines 6, to the portion of the folding line 5, which extends beyond the foldingline intersection, between the ends of this portion, along the irregular line represented at 11 and thence in a direction toward the bottom-forming portion 9 of the blank to the adjacent point of intersection of the line 5 with the line6. The irregular lines '11 each comprise, in the particular construction illustrated, a portion 12 which ex-. tends part way across the extension from an outer edge thereof and is shown as parallel with the folding-line 6, a portion 13 which extends from the inner end of the portion 12 in a direction away from the adjacent folding line 6, and shown as parallel withthe folding lines 5, and a portion 14 which extends from the outer end of theportion 13 to the folding-line 5 at the portion of the latter extending beyond its intersection with the folding-line 6; The line along which the corner extension is cut from the end of the line 14 to the adjacent point of intersection of the folding-lines 5 and 6, and above referred to, is represented at 15. Thus cutting each corner extension divides it into two sections 16 and 17, the section 16, wlncn is connected with the adjacent end of the wall 8 along the extension of the folding line 5, this extension of the line 5 being represented at 18, forming a tongue hingedly connected with the wall carrying it and presenting a shoulder portion 19 which, when the box is erected, extends in a direction toward the bottom portion 9 of the box. The other section 17, which is con nected with an end of the adjacent wall 7 along the extension of the folding-line 6, this extension of the folding-line being represented at 20 and this section thus being hin edly connected with the wall carrying it, orms a stiffening reenforcement for the wall carrying the tongue 16 at the corner of the box, as hereinafter described, it bein noted that the edge of the section 17 forme by cutting the material along the line 15 is straight and in the erecte condition of the box parallels the upper surface of the bottom 9 of the box.

The ends of the walls 7 adjacent each corner extension 10 are shown as containing openings 21 adapted to receive the shoulderportions 19 of the tongues 16 and form therewith corner locks at the four corners of the box for maintaining the walls in erected condition, the openings 21 being shown as formed by partially cutting from the material forming the walls 7, the lips 22 which are adapted to be flexed at the portions thereof at which they are connected with the walls carryingthem, to permit of the introducing of the shoulders 19 of the tongues into the openings thus afforded in the side walls 7.

In the erecting of the box from the blank of Fig. 1, the walls 7 are folded u wardly and inwardly toward each other albng the folding-line 5, and the sections 17 are swung at the folding lines 20 in an inward direction to cause them to extend inwardly at an angle to the walls carrying them. The walls 8 are then swung upwardly and inwardly toward each other along the folding-line 6 and against the sections 17, as clearly shown in Fig. 3, and the tongues 16 are then swung at the folding-lines 18 toward the adjacent side walls 7 and the shoulder portions 19 inserted. into the openings 21 to the position shown-in Figs. 2 and 4', in which operation the one erecting the box slightly outwardly deflects the end walls carrying the tongues 16 to permit the shoulder portions of the tongues to enter the openings 21, this being rendered possible because of the severing of the corner extensions 10 along the lines 15.

The box may be readily unfolded to flat condition by flexing the walls carrying the tongues, between the upper and lower edges of these walls, to cause the tongues to swing upwardly out of interlocked position with the portions of the walls provided with the openings 21.

The feature of providing the tongues as stated is of great importance from a practical standpoint, as the tongues remain interlocked with the walls containing the openings 21 even in the rough handling of the box and the supporting of the latter by the grasping of one wall only thereof. In this connection it may be stated that when pressure is brought to bear on the end walls in a direction tending to cause the latter to flatten outwardly into the plane of the bottom portion 9, the tendency of these walls is to swing at the folding lines between them and the bottom portion of the box, but as the tongues and openings with which they cooperate are so formed that to swing the tongues out of the openings the tongues must be swung through arcs of less 'radius than in those cases in which the tongues are united with the walls carrying them clear to the bottom portion 9 of the box, the shoulder portions of the tongues will not swing out of the openings 21 but will be held in interlocked relation thereto thus preventing these walls from collapsing. It will also be noted that the shoulder portions of the tongues extend downwardly toward the bottom ortion 9 of the box, which is a desirable eature in boxes of this character, as thereby obstruction to the introduction of merchandise into the box is avoided.

The feature of providing the stifiening reenforcements 17 is ofadvantage, especially where the grain of the material forming the walls agairmt which they flatwise extend in the erected condition of the box and which, in the particular construction illustrated carry the tongues, extends lengthwise of these walls, whereby these walls are inherently less resistant to buckling or breaking in the case of downward pressure exerte against their upper edges, than in the case of the remaining walls of the box wherein the grain extends vertically. The stiffening sections 17 as will be noted, and as described, extend substantially the full height of the walls which they oppose, viz, the walls 8, their lower edges 15 flatwise engaging the upper surface of the bottom portion 9 of the box whereby the box walls are caused to be rendered much more resistant to stresses tending to break them down than in the case of an unreenforced box. Furthermore,

' -the stiffening reenforcements serve to close the box at the lower cut portions thereof.

Another feature of advantage resulting from forming a box as explained, and which is in accordance with the preferred embodiment of my invention, and applies to at least certain sizes of boxes, is that no stripping of cut-out parts, which is an operation required to be performed in the forming of corner lock boxes as hitherto provided, is rendered necessary, as no portions of the blank are required to be cut away, and thus the box may be very economically constructed. Furthermore, the box may be made from a rectangular sheet of material and all of the portions of the material comprising the sheet may be utilized to advantage in the manufacture of the box. The constructing of the box from a blank of substantially rectangular shape in cross-section without cut-away portions at the outer edges of its corners forming irregular edge contours as in the case of the common form of corner lock box, is of advantage especiall in the packaging of a stack of the blanlzs.

It will be understood that in boxes where the upwardly-extending walls do not extend at a right angle to the bottom portion, as for example where their walls flare outwardly in. an upward direction, the extensions of the folding lines 5 and 6 beyond the intersections of the latter, instead of being in alinement with the portions of these lines defining the bottom portion 9 would extend obliquely thereto.

While I have illustrated and described a partlcular construction embodying my invention, I do not wish to be understood as intending to limit it thereto as the same may be variously modified and altered without departing from the spirit of my invention.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, isz

A box made from a blank comprising a bottom portion, walls rising therefrom-and extending at an angle to each other, tongues on walls of the box adapted to overlap adjacent walls, said tongues and the walls overlapped thereby having portions adapted to be. interlocked with each other, said interlocking portions when in set up condition consisting of a slot below the upper edge of the box and angularly disposed relative to the upright corner thereof, and a downwardly extending portion the inner engaging edge of which is substantially parallel with the box corner, said tongues at their juncture with the walls carrying them reaching short of the bottom portion of the box.

' SIEGMUN D BACHMAN N. 

